The artist featured on this website, Ven. Tenzin Gendun, was born in Sri Lanka, where he spent his early childhood, before moving with his family to London, at the age of eight. He completed his education in the United Kingdom, earning a degree in art (graphic design with a focus on illustration). During his years in art school, he began to feel increasingly disillusioned with the contemporary art world, which appeared to him at the time to be… largely shaped by self-promotion and ego. While this perception reflected his own inner questioning as much as the environment itself, it marked a decisive turning point in his life.

Parallel to his artistic training, his interest in spirituality deepened. Raised within a  Christian context (his father Catholic, his mother Anglican) he grew up within a religious culture shaped by Sri Lanka’s layered colonial history. By his mid-teens, however, Christianity no longer seemed able to address his inner concerns. He began exploring other contemplative traditions, particularly Buddhism, engaging with yoga, meditation, and early practices rooted in the Theravāda tradition.

By the final year of his studies, Ven. Tenzin Gendun felt a strong impulse to leave the United Kingdom altogether. Having saved some money, he decided to travel through Asia (India and the Far East) before eventually returning to Sri Lanka.

In 1991, he arrived in Dharamsala, where he discovered Tushita Retreat Centre. The teachings he encountered there resonated deeply: the clarity of the methods, the precision of the psychological insight and the integrity of the teachers felt both rigorous and… meaningful. Next, he traveled to Nepal and attended the November Course at Kopan Monastery, where he met Lama Zopa Rinpoche.

Expressing his wish to become a Buddhist monk, he received clear encouragement, along with guidance to reflect further through sustained practice. Following this advice, he spent time in Bodh Gaya performing his preliminary practices, and in early 1992, during the Tibetan New Year, he received ordination.

After ordaining, Ven. Tenzin Gendun sought direction regarding where to live and study as a monk. The response he received was unexpected: he was sent to New Zealand! Using the remainder of his savings, he traveled there and spent several years at FPMT centers, assisting teachers, supporting daily activities, and participating in teaching programs within small monastic communities, before returning to the United Kingdom in 1999. Shortly thereafter, he was advised to continue his studies in France, at Nalanda Monastery. He moved there in 2000 and has lived and practiced in France ever since.

Alongside monastic training and study, painting has remained an integral part of his practice. He approaches painting not as a form of self-expression, but as a contemplative discipline, closely aligned with meditation. Each work becomes an opportunity to observe the movements of mind-grasping, hesitation, projection and… many others, for sure, as they arise in relation to form, space, and gesture. In this way, painting functions as a lived investigation of impermanence, attention and ultimately… intention.

His drawings and paintings are deliberately minimalistic, guided by principles of restraint and clarity. By reducing form to its essential elements, the work aims to embody (rather than illustrate) contemplative insight. This simplicity invites us into a direct encounter with the image, allowing personal meaning to emerge… undistracted.

His artwork offers an open space: one in which we  may uncover our own insights, encountering both stillness and intensity. This website is maintained by Venerable Gendun’s assistant, Veronica Anghelescu Drölma. Should you wish to purchase any of the drawings, you are welcome to get in touch by email. All proceeds are offered to charitable causes, and full transparency regarding the supported projects will be provided.